Next Gen Game Consoles: Winners And Losers [View article]
I am skeptical about the next generation of consoles. Tablets and mobile devices now have a much larger installed base than the previous generation of consoles. If children are playing Angry Birds on their tablet, they will be less inclined to ask for a next generation console from their parents. The price tag is likely to be $400+ for the PS4 and XBox successor. That is a major purchase for families that already have mobile games to play. Likewise the typical price point for game software has shifted from $29 discs to $0.99 downloads on the mobile app stores.
The End Of The Consumer? What The Long-Term Decline Of Consumption Means For Investors [View article]
Globalization and automation have lowered the demand for US workers. This leads to lower wages. Government transfer payments are the best way to prop up consumer incomes. Without those payments, the economy would shrink due to lack of demand.
Don't worry about inflation and rising interest rates. The greater danger is austerity driven unemployment like that seen in southern Europe.
Yelp Laps Up Growth On Mobile Traction And International Expansion [View article]
Trainer - Yelp hit 100 million visitors which is a significant milestone. Their service is very close to the purchasing decision for many consumers. I personally use the service as my de facto yellow pages on my phone.
The company does have potential. Agree that the lack of profitability is disappointing, but I think mobile is going to be a winner for them.
Facebook Earnings Preview: Watch Mobile Ad Revenue And Expense Growth [View article]
Looking on the bright side, FB is 12% cheaper than prior to its last earnings report. Agree that they should show strong mobile revenues. However, I am concerned that the desktop audience is stagnant or declining and the mobile revenue is still only projected to grow to 25% of the total.
There are some recent reports of users leaving Facebook in developed markets which is a worrying trend also. For example, the report below about teens being less interested in the social network.
Smartphones Will Drive Growth At Yelp [View article]
Agree that Yelp is a risky stock and it is not profitable. It is free to get your business listed on Google, but that has not stopped them making big profits in advertising. Maybe Yelp can do something similar for mobile business searches. If not, they will fall like the proverbial lead balloon as you mention.
It's Time For Investors To 'Like' Facebook Stock [View article]
FB has a billion users and struggles to make a significant profit. Costs are growing faster than revenue. I would like to see some breakout profits before liking this stock.
Reasons To 'Unlike' Facebook Q4 Earnings [View article]
FB dropped over 10% since their earnings call and YHOO is up about 10%. No positions in either company. Hope they both succeed in the long term. FB has a long way to go to justify their valuation.
Tesla's Not-So-New Manufacturing Model [View article]
The Model S is a beautiful car. I see many proud owners driving them around Silicon Valley every day. I think Tesla can build a profitable business selling this car to luxury drivers around the world.
Your calculation for Toyota revenue is too high. Toyota does not sell $1778 billion worth of cars annually. I converted their last 12 months of revenue from Google Finance and it came to $91 billion. This is about 57 times Tesla revenue, so it's still a David vs Goliath battle.
Based on the job advertisements on the Tesla web-site, I understand they run the SAP ERP system. This includes a standard MRP module. In general, MRP systems are off-the-shelf software now with companies enhancing the solution internally. The ERP can communicate with suppliers through various EDI interfaces also.
I have no position in TSLA stock. I'd like to see them succeed from an environmental perspective, but I am the proud driver of a Chevy Volt which I highly recommend.
If You Think Microsoft Is Dying, You Need A Reality Check [View article]
Microsoft is dominating in the enterprise software sector. Business runs on Microsoft Office. It's very hard to avoid using Word and Excel to communicate in any company.
In the future, we're going to see more powerful computers driving greater workplace automation. Robotics, make-to-order manufacturing and more advanced CRM/ERP systems. I think Microsoft has plenty of room to grow and take market share from the other software vendors.
Reasons To 'Unlike' Facebook Q4 Earnings [View article]
I have no position in FB and no plans to initiate any positions as per the disclosure above. I am skeptical about their potential revenue growth and I think growth expectations are too high. I have great respect for Mark Zuckerberg. I suspect that revenue may not be his top priority. I don't think he'll turn the site into a flashy billboard covered with display advertising.
How much revenue can be generated by mobile display ads? I use Facebook on my cell-phone and can't remember ever seeing an advertisement. Many users have trained themselves to ignore display ads.
Reasons To 'Unlike' Facebook Q4 Earnings [View article]
I think Seeking Alpha sends articles to subscribers via email and not Facebook. User base is certainly powerful and Facebook are the number one site. Long term, maybe they will monetize their users successfully and drastically increase revenues. Or maybe their users will drift off to other services.
Next Gen Game Consoles: Winners And Losers [View article]
The End Of The Consumer? What The Long-Term Decline Of Consumption Means For Investors [View article]
Don't worry about inflation and rising interest rates. The greater danger is austerity driven unemployment like that seen in southern Europe.
Yelp Laps Up Growth On Mobile Traction And International Expansion [View article]
The company does have potential. Agree that the lack of profitability is disappointing, but I think mobile is going to be a winner for them.
Yelp Laps Up Growth On Mobile Traction And International Expansion [View article]
Smartphones Will Drive Growth At Yelp [View article]
Smartphones Will Drive Growth At Yelp [View article]
Facebook Earnings Preview: Watch Mobile Ad Revenue And Expense Growth [View article]
There are some recent reports of users leaving Facebook in developed markets which is a worrying trend also. For example, the report below about teens being less interested in the social network.
http://abcn.ws/13HGYPE
Smartphones Will Drive Growth At Yelp [View article]
Yelp jumped by 8% today. The NY Times article below may have been an influence.
http://nyti.ms/YBhKSX
Apps are a convenient way to search on mobile devices. This trend is good for Yelp.
Smartphones Will Drive Growth At Yelp [View article]
It's Time For Investors To 'Like' Facebook Stock [View article]
Reasons To 'Unlike' Facebook Q4 Earnings [View article]
Tesla's Not-So-New Manufacturing Model [View article]
Your calculation for Toyota revenue is too high. Toyota does not sell $1778 billion worth of cars annually. I converted their last 12 months of revenue from Google Finance and it came to $91 billion. This is about 57 times Tesla revenue, so it's still a David vs Goliath battle.
Based on the job advertisements on the Tesla web-site, I understand they run the SAP ERP system. This includes a standard MRP module. In general, MRP systems are off-the-shelf software now with companies enhancing the solution internally. The ERP can communicate with suppliers through various EDI interfaces also.
I have no position in TSLA stock. I'd like to see them succeed from an environmental perspective, but I am the proud driver of a Chevy Volt which I highly recommend.
If You Think Microsoft Is Dying, You Need A Reality Check [View article]
In the future, we're going to see more powerful computers driving greater workplace automation. Robotics, make-to-order manufacturing and more advanced CRM/ERP systems. I think Microsoft has plenty of room to grow and take market share from the other software vendors.
Reasons To 'Unlike' Facebook Q4 Earnings [View article]
How much revenue can be generated by mobile display ads? I use Facebook on my cell-phone and can't remember ever seeing an advertisement. Many users have trained themselves to ignore display ads.
Reasons To 'Unlike' Facebook Q4 Earnings [View article]